The concept of removing the defender is fundamental to tactics. Sometimes you might identify a crucial defender, the removal of which may allow you to carry out a tactic. In some cases, it can even be worth it to sacrifice material to remove that defender.

The concept of the OVERLOADED PIECE is fundamental for tactics. A pieces which is doing two important jobs at once (i.e. defending two different squares) can be exploited. Such a piece can be said to be "overworked".

A double attack occurs when two of one side's pieces are attacked. Sometimes this happens as a result of a "fork" - when one piece attacks two. But it can also happen as a result of a "discovered attack" - a piece moves out of the way, opening up a new attack while creating a threat of its own.

Using a piece to attack two of the opponent's pieces (a "fork") can be strong; but it is just as strong to create two more complicated threats at once - such as threatening both a piece and a mating attack with one move.

In certain positions, when your opponent's king is exposed and you have enough attackers available, you can begin an unstoppable "chase" of the opponents king - not unlike "running the table" in billiards - a king hunt is when your entire army gets involved in the pursuit of your opponent's king.